Darkwater Rapids How am I gonna be an optimist about this?

But if you close your eyes does it almost feel like
nothing changed at all?

Phoenix Avalon

It felt like it had been raining for days, the thunder only drowned out by the crashing of the nearby falls, the river swelling to swallow up the pebble lined banks where Darkwater Rapids had once stood (not that Percy knew the wet ground beneath her paws had once belonged to another). Her eyes narrowed against the water laden wind that blew into her sodden face. If this kept up she'd need gills to get by. Her huff sent droplets flying from the end of her muzzle as she considered how best to get out of the weather.

Nothing was obvious to her firey gaze, perhaps the tumbledown trees further upstream would offer more protection? But that would mean walking uphill, and she wasn't terribly fond of the idea of back-tracking. Even the canopy offered no respite, the sagging of the sodden branches turning singular droplets into running streams, waterfalls in minature in their own right. "Askan, why'd ya bring us here huh?" But she knew she was talking to herself. They'd all split up this morning.

She shook, for all the good it would do her, a low grumble meant to be unheard as she continued to stalk through the trees looking for any semblance of cover. She wasn't even sure she remembered what being dry felt like.

hawthorne riverflow

crawl 'till dawn

She was on some wild adventure. Or at least that's how she was looking at it. This place was different from home but in a good way. There were things to climb and different kind of water to try and play in. Did she miss home? Sure she did, who wouldn't but she was able to keep herself busy by exploring new things every day.

Today was no different as she ventured through the damp lands. The rain had been persistent the last few days but that did little to stop the young Riverflow from exploring. As she was clambering over a slippery log a voice caught her attention. The distraction caused her to slip right off and meet the ground with a soft thud. Quickly she was back up on her paws, shaking out her fur and bounding forward towards where the voice had come from.

"Hey!" The child called out, orange eyes squinting as she made out the dark figure ahead. Looked pretty familiar! Was probably one of the friends that were hanging out in the area. Hawthorne was still working on getting down names but soon enough she'd get there. For now, hollering hey would do a well enough job.

Nope hope, no love, no glory, no happy ending

Phoenix Avalon

Percy's chin tipped up as a young voice called out Hey! Bright eyes narrowing through the rain to finally make out a grey shape headed her way. As lightning flashed overhead she called out too, "Get over here kid, we should find somewhere to take cover!" It wasn't getting any drier after all and the last thing they all needed was to get sick with no real pack to look after them and no end to their travels in sight.

It was then her eyes fell on the dead tree, a crack in the base of it's trunk only wide enough at it's lowest point to allow a wolf to squeeze inside. Maybe if she dug a bit they'd be able to take cover. Dragging her paws through the sodden earth quickly coated her legs, chest and underside with thick sticky mud but it looked like she had succeeded in opening up the cover to them. A quick poke of her nose told her the lower half was abandoned, only a terrified squirrel clinging to it's family in the upper reaches of the hollow, well out of the wolves reach.

"In here," She motioned for the younger wolf to go first. There was room enough for both of them to lay down but Percy would need to shield the entrance with her back to cut the wind and water.

The peppered child wasted no time in awkwardly closing the distance with the yearling. Hawthorne did her best to avoid any slippery rocks or patches of mud. Usually she would have cherished the wet conditions but this rain was awful. The wind whipped the rain against her growing form. It almost didn't matter how much she squinted for the rain kept finding ways into her vision.

As ordered she wasted no time crawling into the tree's cover. She did her best to take up as little room as possible so her gangly company had room too. It took a few moments of shifting about before she found the perfect spot. A sigh of relief slipped past her lips as she set her head against the wall of the tree.

"What were ya doin' out in the rain?" A brow raised up, not thinking the question could easily be flipped back to her